On a midnight delivery run, Qin Yu stumbles upon something far worse than an ordinary murder: a monster wearing human skin, performing a bloody ritual. As he teeters on the brink of death, a cold, imposing voice rings out deep within his soul: “Sovereign of All Souls, your destiny awakens.”
From that moment on, the world is utterly transformed in his eyes. The spirits of emperors, ministers, heroes, and champions who have slumbered throughout history begin crossing time and appearing one after another.
The greatest emperor of all time offers to lay his foundation. A god of war, the Butcher of Men, willingly clears his path. The cult leader who toppled a dynasty calls him a fellow Daoist... Unimaginable powers and karmic ties are forced upon him, one after another.
Beneath the city’s calm surface, undercurrents surge. Ancient organizations emerge from hiding, while towering corporate titans cast their shadows. They try to recruit him, coerce him, or assassinate him, all for the forbidden power within him, a force they regard as an “uncontrollable variable.”
Qin Yu only wanted to live an ordinary life, but he is forced to climb higher with every step. When he finally reaches the power of The Outcast, second to none and above all others, he discovers in horror that this so-called pinnacle is merely the position of a slightly conspicuous piece on a vast chessboard spanning a thousand years.
Who is the player moving the pieces in the shadows? What is the truth behind the spirits paying homage? Is the destiny of the “Sovereign” a blessing, or the deepest of curses?
It all began on the night the blood moon hung in the sky, with a food delivery that would never arrive on time.
